​Lawmakers to Obama: Declassify remaining pages of 9/11 report

The moon rises between the "Tribute in Light" illuminated next to One World Trade Center (L) during events marking the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, in Jersey City, New Jersey, September 11, 2014. (Reuters / Eduardo Munoz) / Reuters

A bipartisan group of lawmakers on Capitol Hill are pressuring the White House to declassify 28 pages of the 9/11 Commission Report that have been rumored to detail an investigation into alleged ties between Saudi Arabia and Al-Qaeda.

These pages have been
classified since the original report was released during the
presidency of George W. Bush, and President Barack Obama has so
far declined to declassify them. While it’s unclear exactly what
the contents of the documents are, several current and former
lawmakers who have read the pages say they illustrate links
between the Saudi government and some of the terrorists
responsible for attacking the World Trade Center and Pentagon
back in 2001.

Although the bill urging President Obama to release the 28 pages
– known as House Resolution 14 – was introduced in January after
a failed attempt to pass it in 2013, recently released testimony
from convicted Al-Qaeda member Zacarias Moussaoui has breathed
new life into calls for declassification. In early February,
Moussaoui said several members of the Saudi royal family,
including three princes, donated money directly to Al-Qaeda.

Questions about the legitimacy of Moussaoui’s testimony persist,
but lawmakers are nonetheless calling on President Obama to
release what many people believe is the 9/11 Commission’s
findings on the alleged links. Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.), the
author of the bill, framed the issue as one of transparency.

“You cannot have trust in your government when your
government hides information from you, particularly on something
horrific like 9/11,” said Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) to
The Hill on Friday.

According to Congress.gov, Jones’ bill has 13 co-sponsors,
including 8 Democrats.

Adding pressure on the White House is the fact that former
Florida Sen. Bob Graham, who chaired the Senate Intelligence
Committee as the 9/11 report was drafted, recently said the
remaining 28 pages “point a very strong finger at Saudi
Arabia as being the principal financier” of the 9/11
attacks, according to the New York Times.

In 2012, meanwhile, Graham said he was “convinced that there
was a direct line between at least some of the terrorists who
carried out the September 11 attacks and the government of Saudi
Arabia.” The comment was given as a sworn statement as part
of a lawsuit against the Saudi government, which was filed by
families of 9/11 victims.

President Obama has also reportedly told families of victims of
the 9/11 attacks that he supported declassifying the redacted
pages. At a February 5 press briefing, White House spokesman Josh
Earnest said the intelligence community is still reviewing the
documents for any potential declassification.

“The administration, in response to a specific congressional
request, last year asked the intelligence community to conduct a
classification review of that material,” he said. “And
we did so in keeping with the standard procedure for determining
whether or not it’s appropriate to release classified
material.”

Not everyone is convinced the 28 redacted pages are all that
interesting. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-C.A.) of the House Intelligence
Committee told The Hill that allegations against Saudi Arabia are
“unsubstantiated,” but did not dismiss outright the
possibility that the section would be made public.

“I have read the 28 pages and the issues raised in those
pages were investigated by the 9/11 Commission and found to be
unsubstantiated,” he said.

“I believe that at appropriate time in the near future they
should be declassified – with any redactions necessary to protect
intelligence sources and methods – as this would help demystify
the issues raised.”

For its part, Saudi Arabia said back in 2003 that it supports the release of
the documents, saying “the idea that the Saudi government
funded, organized or even knew about September 11th is malicious
and blatantly false.”

“Saudi Arabia has nothing to hide. We can deal with questions
in public, but we cannot respond to blank pages.”